Optimal dietary patterns for healthy aging

As the global population ages, it is critical to identify diets that, beyond preventing noncommunicable diseases, optimally promote healthy aging. Here, using longitudinal questionnaire data from the Nurses' Health Study (1986–2016) and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (1986–2016), we examined the association of long-term adherence to eight dietary patterns and ultraprocessed food consumption with healthy aging, as assessed according to measures of cognitive, physical and mental health, as well as living to 70 years of age free of chronic diseases. After up to 30 years of follow-up, 9,771 (9.3%) of 105,015 participants (66% women, mean age = 53 years (s.d. = 8)) achieved healthy aging. For each dietary pattern, higher adherence was associated with greater odds of healthy aging and its domains. The odds ratios for the highest quintile versus the lowest ranged from 1.45 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.35–1.57; healthful plant-based diet) to 1.86 (95% CI = 1.71–2.01; Alternative Healthy Eating Index). When the age threshold for healthy aging was shifted to 75 years, the Alternative Healthy Eating Index diet showed the strongest association with healthy aging, with an odds ratio of 2.24 (95% CI = 2.01–2.50). Higher intakes of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, unsaturated fats, nuts, legumes and low-fat dairy products were linked to greater odds of healthy aging, whereas higher intakes of trans fats, sodium, sugary beverages and red or processed meats (or both) were inversely associated. Our findings suggest that dietary patterns rich in plant-based foods, with moderate inclusion of healthy animal-based foods, may enhance overall healthy aging, guiding future dietary guidelines. In two longitudinal cohorts followed for 30 years, the associations of eight different dietary patterns with healthy aging—encompassing cognitive, physical and mental health—were studied, identifying food constituents linked to greater or lesser odds of healthy aging.